Finding Magic
by Fantasyfictionwriter
Summary: It has been 8 years since Rachel Evans was last seen, and in that time a lot has changed for our favourite characters, yet the thought of their missing Marauder, has never been far from anyone's mind. When Albus arrives with the newest teacher for the new term, the group gets the shock of their lives, but just who is Jenny Matthews, and does she have any connection to Rachel?
1. Chapter 1

**So hi everyone. I promised you all a sequel and here it is. I hope that you will enjoy my new story 'Finding Magic' as much as you enjoyed 'Sister's of Magic'. For those of you who are new to my stories, I would recommended reading 'Sister's Of Magic' first otherwise some of this story won't make any sense. But for those of you returning to my work, then hi and welcome back. I already have the first few chapters of this story written so hopefully that might make posting new chapters a bit quicker, we shall see. :)**

Chapter 1

Jenny Matthews awoke to a sunny summer morning. She stretched her arms and smiled to herself. Her dog Lola awoke from her position on the end of Jenny's bed and as the dog opened her eyes she found herself looking at Jenny. Lola barked a 'good morning' to her mistress.

"Good morning to you to Lola." Jenny pulled her white duvet off of her body and swung her legs out of her bed and into her awaiting slippers. Jenny felt the soft and warm material of her silk nightdress wrapping itself around her now awake body. Although she wasn't a fan of dresses or skirts Jenny did wear quite a few nightdresses as she found them surprisingly comfortable. Stroking her dog on the top of her head Jenny gazed around her room. Jenny lived in a small converted farm house in a quiet village in the Cotswolds in England. She loved the small placed she called home and couldn't see her life outside of the village. In fact the village she lived in was all she knew. Smiling Jenny caught sight of the picture she had standing on her dresser table. It was of her with her family, brothers Jake and Oscar and her only slightly older sister April, and her mother and father Susan and Nick Matthews. Jenny raised her eyes from the picture to see the early morning sunrise.

"Come on Lola." Jenny pushed herself off the bed and slipped into her dressing gown and headed out of her bedroom and down the stairs to her living room. She sighed as she spotted the huge pile of marking she had piled on her kitchen table. Although Jenny loved her job as a teacher at the local primary school, she knew that her summer had far from begun. Once all of her marking and lesson plans were done then she could start enjoying her summer. Jenny had just reached her kitchen and was about to make herself a coffee when she remembered she had no coffee left in the house.

"Damn." She muttered to herself. She turned her head to see that Lola had followed her down the stairs and into the kitchen. She smiled at the dog as an idea came to mind. Glancing at the clock she noticed that she would have time to go for a run before calling in at her favourite coffee shop for her morning coffee.

"Lola stay." She commanded as she raced back to her room to change into a pair of track suit trousers and a vest top. She grabbed her iPod from her speaker where it had been charging and as she placed it in the holder she had to wear on her arm when running, she picked up her water bottle and raced back to the kitchen. Quickly filling up her bottle, she tied her hair up in a ponytail and grabbed Lola's lead from its place by the door.

"Lola run!" She called as the small Labrador came bounding out of the kitchen eager to go running with her mistress. Jenny slipped the lead onto the dog and after grabbing her keys, mobile and purse which she placed into her small backpack which she kept by the door; she opened the front door allowing the cool morning air to enter the house. Quickly closing the door behind her and locking it, she slipped the handle of Lola's lead around her wrist, pressed play on her iPod and began her run.

After about an hour and a half of running Jenny finally came to a stop outside Mamma Joan's tea shop. The lady who ran the shop, funnily enough her name was Joan, was used the strange hours that the people in the village lived by and was often open rather early in the morning. As she pulled out her earphones and pressed the pause button on her iPod, Jenny pushed open the door to the shop and stepped inside. She was greeted by the all too familiar smell of fresh baking and ground coffee beans. She spotted Joan behind the counter in front and noticed that the shop was practically empty apart from Mr McDonald who sat in his usual seat in the corner of the shop. Jenny waved at him as she walked to the counter Lola trotting at her heels. Joan's daughter had been the one who had given Jenny Lola so the dog was more than welcome in the shop.

"Morning Joan."

"Morning Jenny dear and how's my favourite customer this fine morning."

"We're fine thank you aren't we Lola." Lola barked. Joan smiled and came around the counter to pat Lola on the head and hug the girl who was like her honorary grand daughter.

Jenny was well liked in the village. She was thought of by all as an extended daughter or sister, after her appearance in the local park 8 years ago. Jenny herself was known throughout the village as 'mystery girl', and when tourists arrived in the village they all left knowing the story about the 'mystery girl'. Jenny didn't mind what she was called.

"Usual sweetheart?"

"Please Joan and some water for Lola please." Joan smiled and pulled out a small bowl which she filled with water for Lola.

"Take a seat and I'll shout when it's done." She said passing Jenny the bowl. Jenny nodded and took a seat as near to the counter as she could get so that Joan wouldn't have to travel far. At 70 Joan wasn't exactly known for her speed. In fact some of the villagers thought it was about time Joan passed the cafe on to her daughter, Sally.

Jenny placed the bowl on the floor and Lola began to lap it up quickly. A minute later Jenny heard her name and walked to the counter to get her coffee from Joan. Joan watched Jenny as she sat back down with her coffee, and as Lola curled up at her feet. At 26 Jenny had become a very beautiful woman, far different from the bruised and battered 18 year old Susan and Nick had found in the park 8 years ago. Joan could remember the whole thing as if it was yesterday.

_Flashback_

_Just as Joan was about to close the cafe one wild and stormy night there came a pounding at her door and she was shocked to see the entire Matthews family plus a young girl standing outside the shop. _

_"Please Joan let us in." Of course Joan opened the doors immediately and let the family came inside. They were all wet, but the girl with them was soaked through to her skin. Her incredibly long midnight black hair was stuck to her face and body, whilst her bright blue eyes looked scared and cold; she had a cut on her forehead in the shape of a lightning bolt which looked like it had been inflicted on her recently. Her skin was so white and cold she looked like she was a covered in snow._

_"What's all this about? You should all be at home in the warm." Joan scolded them as a clap of thunder filled the sky. _

_"We just went for a walk Joan," Oscar said. _

_"When it started to rain and we had to run all the way here." Jake finished. _

_"And who's this?" Joan asked pointing to the young girl they had with them. _

_"We found her in the park." April told her. _

_Joan looked shocked; she turned to Nick for confirmation. _

_"It's true. She had been hidden by some bushes. Poor thing was so cold it was like touching an icicle." Joan then noticed that the girl was wrapped up in what appeared to be Nick's coat. Susan then took over from her husband. _

_"We're sorry Joan we know you're closed, but we thought if she didn't get somewhere warm quick she'd freeze to death. It's been so cold lately." Joan had to agree, it was unusually cold for the beginning of the summer, and all the signs of a very bitter cold winter were approaching. _

_"Well let me get you all something to drink or you'll all freeze to death." _

_Soon enough Joan had bought out popping hot cups of tea and coffee for the family, along with a few left over treats from the days baking. The family tucked in but Joan couldn't help stare at the young woman who just sat on a chair pulling Nick's coat further around herself. _

_"So what were you doing out in the storm sweetheart?" Joan asked. The girl stayed silent. _

_"She hasn't said a word since we found her." Nick said sadly. _

_"Not a word?" The family shook their heads. Joan looked shocked, before turning back to the girl. _

_"What about your name darling? I bet you have a very pretty name. What about where your from?" The girl moved her lips but nobody heard a word she spoke. _

_"What was that sweetie?" Susan asked placing her coffee on the table. _

_"Castle." Came the almost silent whisper. "I need to get back to the castle." _

_"What castle?" Jake asked. _

_The girl was quiet. "I don't know." _

_"Well what about your name, everyone has a name." Oscar moaned. _

_"Oscar!" His mother scolded him. _

_"I don't know." The girl said breaking the silence. _

_"What?" April asked. _

_"I don't know my name." The girl said her eyes brimming with tears. "I don't know anything about myself!" She placed her arms on the table and once she had placed her head on the arms, sobbed uncontrollably. Susan took the girl and hugged her close as the girl sobbed into Susan's body. _

_"You don't remember anything?" Joan asked. The girl shook her head, her tear stained face was red and blotchy. _

_"What about if we throw some names at you and you see if any of them sound familiar?" The girl nodded. _

_"Summer?" April began, the girl shook her head. _

_"Laura?" She shook her head again. _

_"Molly?"_

_"Holly?" The boys said before high fiving each other. The girl laughed but still shook her head. _

_"Jodie?" Nick asked, and was met with another shake. _

_"Lily?" Joan piped in. The girl paused for a moment. _

_"Does Lily sound familiar?" April asked. The girl paused again before shaking her head. _

_"I'm sorry, but I really can't remember anything." _

_"You have nothing to be sorry about darling." Joan said patting the girl's hand. _

_"How about this, we'll give it a few days till your on the mend, and then we will go to the police and see if anyone has reported you missing?" Susan asked. _

_"Until then you can stay with us." Nick added. _

_"Really?" The girl asked. The family nodded. _

_"I always wanted a sister!" April squealed giving the girl a huge hug. _

_"Until then though you'll need a name that we can call you." Joan said. "Why don't you pick something?" _

_"I don't know what to chose." The girl said. "What would you pick?" She asked Nick and Susan. _

_"Well it's really down to you darling." Nick said. _

_"What about Jennifer?" Susan offered. _

_"I had an aunt called Jennifer." Joan said. "Lovely lady." _

_"Then Jennifer it is, but would it be ok to call me Jenny?" The girl asked. _

_True to their word 3 days later the family walked to the local police station with the intention of reuniting Jenny with her family, however nobody matching Jenny's description had been reported missing in the area. Jenny was disappointed that she wouldn't be able to find out who she really was, and was also scared that the Matthews would stick her into a care home to be rid of her. But the Matthews surprised her by not only taking her to the doctor for a full check up, and in discovering that Jenny was possibly around 18 - 19 years of age, they were allowed to formally adopt Jenny as their own daughter, and so she became Jenny Matthews officially, and had been to this day. _

_Through the influence of the Matthews family Jenny had been able to get a job helping the teacher of the local primary school twice a week, and when she showed potential to be a teacher, the whole village had pitched in to help Jenny pay to complete her teacher's degree at university. Once Jenny had completed the degree the school had snapped her up, and she had been there ever since. _

_End of flashback_

Joan was interrupted from her daydream by Jenny herself.

"Joan, are you alright?"

"Oh I'm fine dear, just daydreaming." Jenny smiled at her honorary grandmother.

"I was just going say bye. I need to get home, I've got a tonne of marking to do, and I'll pop by later if that's ok?" Jenny asked.

"Of course my dear, I'll have a pot of tea waiting for you." Lola barked. "And a bowl of water for you too Lola." Joan chuckled.

Smiling Jenny waved goodbye and left the cafe heading home. Joan smiled at Jenny's retreating form. Jenny may not have know who she really was, but this girl was always going to have a place in the village as Jenny Matthews. Now and forever.

**And so ends the first chapter. As I said at the beginning if you haven't read 'Sister's Of Magic' this story might not make sense, but if anyone has any questions then please feel free to leave me a review, or to send me a private message, I will be more than happy to answer your questions. **

**So as always please read and review (I have lost track of how many times I have written that :) and I will be posting another chapter soon. **

**Enjoy, Beth xx**


	2. Chapter 2

**And here is chapter 2. Sorry it's been a while, but I'm sure we all know how busy life can get, sadly. :( **

Chapter 2

Severus awoke to find his room was pitch black. The room was silent; all he could hear was the quiet noise of his own breathing. Turning his head he wordlessly uttered a spell and the room was engulfed in a low and cold light. He sat up in his bed and glanced around the room. It was just the same as when he had drifted off into an uneasy sleep. His long and black cloak hung from the doors of his wardrobe, his black leather shoes sat on the floor by said wardrobe, patiently waiting to be used, his wand was place in his wand holster which he was around his wrist at all times. A protective spell lay on both the wand and the holster, so they would never break. After what happened to Rachel, the group had taken every protective method to make sure that they would stay safe in their continued search for their missing friend. Severus felt his heart tug and the thought of her name. It had been 8 years since she had gone missing, and each day felt like a continuous struggle. She was the first thought of the day, the last thought at night, and continuously wandering through his thoughts during the day. Severus had almost missed his final exam because of his continued search for her. But thankfully he had managed to pass the exam, even thought all he could think of was Rachel.

A lot had changed in the last 8 years. The group had not only graduated from Hogwarts but also from their respective training. Maddy and Lily had both completed their Healer qualifications and had both been placed at St Mungo's for their training. Both occasionally helped there if they were needed but now worked with Madam Pomfrey in the Hogwarts hospital wing. Frank and Tonks completed their Auror training and although Tonks had been a year behind, and somewhat of a bit clumsy, she and Frank often worked together during their missions. Sirius had gained his reputation as a hit wizard, working with the Aurors when they needed his skills and occasionally working with Frank and Tonks on specially selected missions. James had had a short lived but successful career as the Chaser and Captain for three seasons for the British Quidditch team, but had to retire after being hit rather hard by a low flying Bludger. Alice had gained her degree in Herbology very quickly, and upon learning that Professor Sprout was looking for a teacher to join her and help take some of the pressure of her as the only Herbology teacher, Alice applied for the position, and was quickly snapped up. Remus gained his degree in Astronomy, a rather ironic joke between the group, and he now worked with Professor Sinistra at Hogwarts. Severus had gained his potion masters degree whilst gaining his teaching degree, and after being approached by many successful apothecaries, he chose to return to Hogwarts after Slughorn retired.

Career prospects however weren't the only changes over the 8 year period. After deciding that life was too short and it should not be wasted, Alice and Frank had married after they had finished their first years training, with Tonks and Remus following 18 months later. Maddy and Sirius married after they both graduated. James and Lily had been engaged since the summer of their first years, but it took until nearly 6 months after they graduated for them to tie the knot. Lily had stated she couldn't marry until she had her sister back with her, but after a long talk with her mother, she announced that Rachel would want her to be happy, and by marrying James she would be happier than she had been in a long time. Petunia and Vernon also married, and we're now parents to 4 year old Dudley. Alice and Frank announced not long after Petunia and Vernon, that they too were having a baby, and eventually had a baby boy named Neville. James and Lily also had a baby boy around the same time, naming him Harry James, after his father, and were also parents to 18 month old Ava Rachel, after her auntie. It took Tonks and Remus a while to settle down, after Remus feared he would pass on his werewolf genes to any children they may have, but luckily 2 year old Teddy Lupin, was born with out inheriting his fathers illness, however he did inherit his mothers 'skills'. Not wanting to be left out of all the groups fun, Sirius and Maddy were parents to 3 year old twins Sarah and Hannah, who were identical in every way.

The children had grown up hearing many stories of their brave and courageous Auntie Rachel, and although they had seen pictures of her, each dreamed of one day meeting the woman they all looked up to. Severus meanwhile had stayed alone for the 8 years, never once seeing any other witch. He waited and waited for Rachel to return, and knew that he would never be able to look at anyone the way he looked at Rachel. He loved his honorary nieces and nephews with all his heart, (even though many of his students doubted he had a heart, at least one that wasn't cold and black) but he couldn't help but feel jealous at the thought of what he and Rachel may have had. Glancing to the table placed by his bed, he smiled at the picture of Rachel smiling and laughing at something he had said. She looked so carefree in the photo that Severus had had another copy made, which he kept in a secret compartment of his cloak, so he could keep her close to him at all times.

It was a quiet day in which Severus spent most of his time going through his store cupboard arranging and noting down items he was low on for the new term. The other Marauders were away on their holidays visiting family, and although they had begged him to come with them, as no matter where they went they were all treated like sons and daughters to all their respective parents; he politely declined the invitations, and stayed at the castle, alone. Some of the other teachers were still their, those who didn't have families to return to, even Albus and Minerva had stayed for a bit, before Albus decided to take a short break, and somehow managed to convince Minerva to go with him.

Severus was just about to call it a day, when he heard a noise in his classroom. He pulled his wand from the holster, but quickly pocked it again when he heard a voice call out, "Uncle Severus?" He left the store room to find his classroom was now filled with his nieces and nephews. Sarah spotted him first and rushed to him holding out her arms for a hug. Severus bent down to kneel on the floor, and the girl rushed into his open arms, followed quickly by her sister. Both girls took after their mother, with chestnut brown locks and brown eyes, however their personalities showed they were Sirius's children. Teddy's hair turned bright blue, a parody of his mothers pink hair, when he spotted his uncle and he too rushed for a hug, falling over twice, proving he had inherited his mother's clumsiness. Harry held his sister in both his arms; he too smiled when he saw Severus but hung back so that his sister didn't get squished in the mound of children. Neville also hung back. Since he and Harry were close in age they had become fast friends, and often played together when their parents were working. Ava just squealed. When she had first met Severus, he had scared her, with his long black clothes and his tendency to yell at his students, but since then her fondness for the man her mother considered to be a brother, had grown and grown and now there was nothing more the little girl liked than a big snuggle with her favourite uncle.

"Uncle Severus we missed you." Sarah and Hannah said in complete unison. With Teddy tapping a "missed you" onto the end.

"Grandma and Grandpa asked where you were." Harry told him. Ava just giggled.

"Mummy and Daddy said that they would bring you next time." Neville said quietly. Severus smiled. Although he was a private man, he loved it when his family came to visit.

His mother Eileen still lived in the house they had moved to after she left Tobias. Severus was sure he heard somewhere that Tobias had died in an accident, but it didn't bother him in the slightest. Tonks had also lost her father to cancer, but the rest of the children's grandparents were still going strong, including the formidable Augusta Longbottom.

"Did you miss us, Uncle Severus?" Hannah asked.

"Of course I missed you." Severus said hugging the girls again.

"We bought you a present from holiday." Sarah said, grabbing her uncle's arm and pulling him up. "But mummy and daddy said you have to come and get it yourself, so they could say hello too.' Severus laughed.

"We'll then, we had better go hadn't we?" He stood up, and grabbing his ingredients list to bring with him, positive Alice had some of the ingredients somewhere in the greenhouses.

The children ran along ahead as Severus followed them back to their parent's quarters. He had taken Ava from Harry's struggling arms and the little girl was very happy to be in the arms of her favourite uncle. Since he had taken over the job as the head of Slytherin, Severus's quarters where located in the dungeons, where as the rest of the group was scattered around the castle. The Black's and Potter's quarters were close to the hospital wing in case of an emergency, the Lupin quarters were close to the astronomy tower as they could get without actually being in the tower, and the Longbottom's were in the main group of staff quarters. Alice was also joint head of Hufflepuff with Professor Sprout. The children were the only ones who lived in the castle full time, so the teaching staff all treated them like one big family. The only other child who lived at the castle was Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy.

After Rachel's disappearance Lucius and Narcissa had apologised to the whole group for all the torment and trouble they had helped to cause for the group during their years at Hogwarts, and a weak friendship had been formed. Although the group had strong suspicion that death eaters had been behind Rachel's disappearance, they couldn't prove it had been anyone at the castle who had committed the act. Bellatrix and Rudolphus were currently both in Azkaban for their parts in many death eater crimes, but neither would confess to knowing what had happened to Rachel. Lucius and Narcissa had turned their back on their families and what they stood for, and now currently resided at the castle. Lucius had been very keen on Arithmancy in school, and helped Professor Vector teach the subject, whilst Narcissa helped Madam Pince in the library.

After following the children to the Potters quarters, the door was opened by a smiling Lily. She took her daughter from Severus and beckoned the children inside. The entire group was sat in various places, Maddy and Alice were on the sofa with a space in the middle which Lily sat down in, Remus was sitting in a chair, with Tonks perched on his knee, Frank was sitting in a chair next to the sofa, and James and Sirius were sat on the floor. Sirius grabbed hold of his daughters and pulled them onto the floor with him and began tickling them, to which both the girls giggled. Harry jumped on his dad, Neville slipped over to his mum and Alice pulled him onto her lap, as Teddy as slipped onto his mothers knees. Severus took a seat on the floor with James and Sirius.

"So how was the holiday?"

"It was nice to get away from everything, but I still wish you'd have come with us." Lily said as Ava fought to get off her lap. Lily put her on the floor and she hurried to Severus, who sat her on his lap.

"Mum and Dad really wanted to see you." She added. Since Rachel's disappearance, Severus had become an honorary son to William and Elizabeth Evans, as well as Lily and Petunia becoming like daughters to Eileen.

"Maybe next time, eh?" Severus said. They only smiled a response.

"So where is everyone, place seems really quiet?" Sirius said as he sat with a daughter on each leg.

"Well as far as I know, the only ones who should still be away from the castle are Albus and Minerva." The group looked confused.

"Minnie never takes time away from here." Frank said.

"Apparently Albus convinced her to come on a short break with him, something about a coffee shop with the nicest cakes he has ever had." The group laughed. Albus's sweet tooth was a well known fact.

"That reminds me," Lily said suddenly, "James remind me I have some of mums cakes for Albus."

"Can we give Uncle Severus his present too?" Sarah asked.

"Sure sweetie." Maddy said, as the children rushed from the laps of their parents to get Severus's gift. They came back a few seconds later with a book, which they presented to the stunned man.

"Mum found some old photos whilst she was cleaning the loft the other weekend, so she put some together in a scrap book for you." Lily explained.

"We put some in too." Harry added. Severus flipped through the book and found photos of the group from years gone by. There was one of him and Lily taken at Kings Cross before they got on the train for their second year, along with loads from the trips they had all been on over the summers. The children had also included a few photos of themselves with Severus playing in the grounds of the castle. One photo on the very back page however made Severus stop. It was a black and white photo of himself and Rachel dancing together at the ball in their final year, the last night Severus had seen Rachel alive. Lily must have taken it whilst they were dancing. He could feel his eyes beginning to fill. Suddenly he felt numerous pairs of small arms hugging different parts of his body.

"Don't cry Uncle Severus." Hannah said. "Don't be upset."

"I'm not upset girls." Severus said closing the book. "This is lovely thank you." Severus said hugging back the best he could.

"I can't believe how long it's really been since we saw her." Tonks said quietly. Alice and Maddy each put an arm around Lily who smiled a thank you at the girls. James and Sirius each placed a hand on each of Severus's shoulders and squeezed then gently.

"We'll get her back. She's out there somewhere, just waiting to come home." Frank said. The other nodded an agreement. They all knew how hard it had been on Severus to loose Rachel. For all of them it was like loosing a sister, but whereas each of them had someone they could come home to at the end of the day, Severus had only an empty room. Although they tried their hardest to make sure he always had someone, it was hard, very hard.

"We will find her." Maddy said.

"And when we do we won't let her go again." Severus added.

**I think this has to be one of my favourite chapters to date. I love writing from Severus's point of view, I think he has such an amazing story and I love being able to tell it in my own way. So as always please read and review and I have a big shout out to ****xxxMadameMysteryxxx for being the first review of my new story. **

**Beth xx**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 for you all, enjoy.**

Chapter 3

Jenny closed the door behind her as she returned home after her run. Taking Lola off her lead the dog followed her mistress to bathroom door which was downstairs adjacent to the kitchen. Lola took her usual spot by the back door to guard against intruders. Although she was a small Labrador Lola could bark and yell with the big dogs, and Jenny was very glad of her company. Jenny slipped into the bathroom and turned on the shower, and was soon feeling the warmth of the water cascading down her body. She slipped her hair from its band, and let it fall down her shoulders. When the Matthew's had found her, her hair was incredibly long; so long in fact it was almost annoying. Jenny cut it shorter a few months after she arrived in the village, so that it now fell to the top of her shoulders. She began humming to herself as she showered; songs from her run continued to play in her mind.

Once Jenny had washed herself and her hair, she wrapped herself in a warm and fluffy towel and left the bathroom. Lola lifted her head slightly as Jenny passed her on her way back upstairs to get changed. Jenny walked up the stairs to her room passing the spare room she used as a study, and occasionally a spare room if April ever had arguments with boyfriends and needed to cool off, which was a lot of the time, and entered her bedroom. She pulled open her wardrobe and pulled out a pair of dark blue jeans and her favourite t-shirt, a grey top with the batman symbol in the middle and quickly dressed. Slipping her feet into a pair of sandals she walked back to the kitchen and poured herself a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Lola barked and Jenny poured her food into a bowl for the dog, who barked an appreciation and began her breakfast. Jenny took her bowl and slipped to the table where she booted up her laptop and began the mammoth task of marking her student's books.

At around lunchtime Jenny's mobile rang. Lifting her head from the pile of books, Jenny squinted at the screen trying to see the ID of the caller. She smiled when she realised who was on the end of the phone.

"April, if you need a place to sleep for the night, I don't think I'm gonna be a good choice at the moment."

Nice to speak to you too sis, I'm fine thanks for asking." Jenny laughed.

"Sorry, hello April, how nice to hear from you."

"Thank you that's much better, so what you doing?"

"I'm up to my eyeballs in marking and lesson plans." April let out a noise.

"Well now is the time for fun. How long have you been marking?"

"All morning."

"Then how about lunch? I'll buy." Jenny's stomach growled.

"That sounds like heaven, where shall I meet you."

"How about outside your front door?" April said sheepishly. Jenny leapt from the table and threw open her front door to find her sister sitting in her car, with the window open smiling at her as she waved her phone at Jenny. Jenny laughed.

"Come on let's go." April shouted.

"Let me just grab my bag."

"Bring Lola!" April shouted after her as Jenny ran back into the house.

Jenny emerged a few minutes later with a brown bag over her shoulder Lola running alongside her. Jenny slipped Lola's lead into the bag and pulled on her khaki military style jacket. She locked the door and opened the car door. Lola leapt in the car, and Jenny shut the door after the dog, and slipped in the front seat next to her sister.

"How does Joan's sound?"

"Sounds delicious."

April and Jenny chatted non stop in the short journey to the car park, where April pulled up and parked the car. Clipping Lola on her lead the girls walked the last little way to reach the coffee shop.

"Why don't we sit outside?" April asked. Jenny agreed, and so she and Lola stayed outside whilst April went in and ordered their lunches. She soon returned with 2 cups of fresh lemonade which they enjoyed in the heat of the summer sun. A few minutes later one of the waitresses appeared with their lunch.

"Hi Miss." She said. Jenny recognised her instantly as one of the girls in the top year at her school.

"Hello Francesca, how are you enjoying working here?"

"It's great miss, and I can earn some extra pocket money." April and Jenny laughed as Francesca went back inside and they began their lunch, still chatting.

"So are you coming to mum and dads for Sunday lunch?"

"And miss out on mum's famous apple pie, I don't think so." Jenny replied.

"Mmmmm that is a good pie." April laughed. Lola barked in an agreement that set the girls off laughing again.

They ordered another lemonade each and sat about chatting for a few more hours, before they were interrupted by a voice.

"You got the hermit out of her cave!" April and Jenny turned and spotted Oscar and Jake walking towards them with their children Lois and Ben (Oscar's kids) and Jodie (Jake's little girl). The kids let out a squeal and ran to their aunties, instantly climbing on their laps. Jake and Oscar grabbed some more chairs and joined the girls at their table.

"Well I've got to get April out at some point!" Jenny said with a glint in her eyes.

"He was talking about you!" April called back. The kids laughed.

"Can I have a drink please daddy?" Jodie asked.

"Me too dad!" Ben and Lois yelled together.

"Let me." Jenny said getting up and lifting Lois with her. The little girl squealed and hugged her aunt. "What do you all want?"

"Lemonade!" They chorus's together.

Jenny laughed and slipped into the cafe with Lois still in her arms.

"Hi, can I get 7 lemonades please?" Jenny said to the girl behind the counter. She grabbed a tray from under the till and began placing glasses onto it whilst Jenny put Lois down and pulled her purse from her bag. After paying for the drinks, Lois took one in each hand whilst Jenny expertly balanced the tray and took it outside. She placed it on the table and 6 pairs of hands reached out and grabbed a glass each. Jenny laughed.

The group spent the rest of the afternoon chatting and sipping their drinks. Jenny was laughing at something Jake had said; when out of the comer of her eye she spotted something. It was a woman with a very brightly coloured bag, so bright in fact the colours hurt her eyes. Suddenly she stopped laughing and felt her body being pulled back to another time and place.

She saw a man in a brightly coloured robe and a very long white beard walking down a corridor. He seemed to be talking to someone; someone Jenny saw was a small girl, with black hair. 'Is that me?' She thought to herself. Suddenly the pair stopped in front of a stone statue of a bird, its wings spread wide. The man seemed to mutter something which Jenny couldn't hear before the statue moved to reveal a long staircase, to which the pair entered.

"Jenny?!" Oscar called out gently shaking her shoulder. Jenny shook her head and suddenly she was back at the table with her family looking at her, worried expressions on their faces.

"Did you have another one of your visions Jen?" Oscar asked his hand still on her shoulder. Francesca suddenly came outside with a glass of water which she passed to Jake.

"Joan told me to give you this." She said with a confused expression. She suddenly spotted Jenny.

"Are you ok miss?"

"She's fine kiddo. Tell Joan thank you for this." Jake said, and Francesca slowly slipped back inside the cafe. Jake passed the glass to a shaking Jenny, who took it gratefully. It was a while before she spoke.

"I'm fine." She said. Lois, who was still sitting on Jenny's lap, turned and gave her a hug. Jenny hugged back. She nodded towards her siblings, and they knew that was her cue that she wanted to go home.

Later that night, after Jenny had convinced her family she was ok, and they had left, she was curled up on her sofa, Lola resting her head in Jenny's lap. Jenny had a worn brown leather notebook in her hands, and was scribbling away as if her life depended on it.

"I think that's it Lola." She said to the dog. "All I can remember from this afternoon."

Her 'visions' as the family called them, had started about 2 years ago just as Jenny was finally beginning to feel settled in her home. Each time it would be a short scene often filled with different people and places. Her first one had been simply once when she had heard Lola bark. Suddenly she was staring at a scene in front of her of two children playing with a dog. One girl had long black hair the other was a red head. All of her visions involved Jenny seeing things from above as if she was a ghost floating in the sky. She never saw faces or heard any voices, just people. Once she had seen the first vision she was dragged back to reality by Lola licking her face, as it seemed she had passed out, or collapsed onto her kitchen floor. She quickly grabbed the first scrap of paper she could find and scribbled down everything she had seen. After the visions became more frequent she bought her notebook and began writing them into it to keep all the visions in one place. The worst vision so far had come when she was teaching. She was suddenly over come with a vision of a girl being attacked by a bright green light from somewhere she couldn't see. The light seemed to hit the girl and as it did Jenny felt a sharp and very painful pain in her chest. It seemed to go on for longer than any vision she had had before, and it only ended with another teacher calling her name, as she had again passed out, and her worried students had ran to get help.

Jenny flicked through the book, trying to make sense of her latest vision. She was sure that the woman's brightly coloured bag had set it off, as her visions were mainly triggered by things she saw or heard. Jenny sighed and placed the book to one side.

"What does it all mean Lola?" The dog cocked her head. She hated to see her mistress in distress. Lola licked Jenny's hand. Jenny sighed again.

"Come on." She said. "Maybe a good night's sleep is what we both need." Jenny grabbed her book, and after locking up the house and turning all the lights off, made her way upstairs, got changed into her pj's, cleaned her teeth and slipped into bed, Lola curling up in her usual spot by Jenny's feet. Jenny was a sleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

**And there's chapter 3 for you all. As usual please read and review, and enjoy. **

**Bethxx**


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